Thursday, April 03, 2008

The Preserved Remains of a Doomed Expedition

(Above: Perfectly perserved for 95 years.)

In 1911, the race was on to be the first explorer to reach the South Pole. Renown explorer Robert Falcon Scott hoped to claim the prize for Britain by beating Norwegian Roald Amundsen to the finish. Unfortunately, not only did Scott lose the race, he and his men died before they could make it home to their (slightly) warmer island.

But though they perished, Scott and his men left two fascinating reminders of their time in Antarctica. To this very day, the cabins they used in 1911 and on an expedition ten years earlier remain almost perfectly preserved. There's food in the cupboards, seal blubber hanging from the walls, and expedition photos that looks as though they were just developed. The freezing temperatures have even prevented the specimens the men gathered (such as Emperor penguin eggs) from rotting.

What makes the huts so eerie, however, are the plates laid out on the table and the laundry hanging from clotheslines--as if Scott and his colleagues could return at any moment.

Huts from other Antarctic explorations, including those of the legendary Ernest Shackleton, have also been preserved. But many are in dire need of repair. Let's hope these time capsules get the attention they need before it's too late.

About Me

I'm the author of the Kiki Strike book series (plus a few other things) and co-author (with Jason Segel) of the Nightmares! book series.
This is my old blog. If you want to know what's happening now, check out kirstenmillerbooks.com!